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- Title
SEMANTICS OF THE BRONZE BELTS OF THE KINGDOM OF BIAINILI/URARTU.
- Authors
PETROSYAN, EMMA
- Abstract
Among the objects excavated in archaeological locations of the Kingdom of Urartu, which flourished around the Lake Van in the historic Armenian Highlands (today located in eastern Turkey), between the mid-ninth century BCE and the conquest by the Iranian Medes in the early sixth century BCE, important are bronze belts worn by men and women. These belts are usually richly decorated with ornamentation and visual motives providing us with insights about the life, religion and culture of the Urartu people. The belt no. 4 that used to be kept in the Shlomo Moussaieff Collection, Musa Eretz Israel Museum, in Tel Aviv, and recently transferred to a private collection, was probably worn during the holidays by a young woman of a high social status. The belt has no inscription; and the place of its discovery is unknown. It is nearly fully preserved, about 74 cm long and 6.8 to 7 cm wide. The right section of the belt represents ten women, priestesses-servants attending the queen who is sitting at the sacrificial table. The maids represented on the left section bring gifts, followed by musicians, an acrobat, and a luxurious cart, drawn by two oxen guided by a charioteer. The composition may represent the holiday celebration known as Great Assembly or “feeding the deity”, which included the sacrifice of animals, display of shields, weapons, vessels, and various utensils offered to gods.
- Subjects
VAN (Turkey); BRONZE; SOCIAL status; BELTS (Clothing); GODS; SEMANTICS; YOUNG women; PASSOVER
- Publication
Music in Art: International Journal for Music Iconography, 2023, Vol 48, Issue 1/2, p205
- ISSN
1522-7464
- Publication type
Article